Killing Insects for Macro Photography

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[MicaelWidell]

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[stephenbarlow]

The first and most important aspect of killing insects for macro photography, for aesthetic, hobby reasons and not research, is whether it is declared, and whether it is being dishonestly passed off as a live insect. I see a lot of deep stacks of what are clearly dead insects, that have almost certainly been placed in a freezer, dishonestly passed off as a live insect, they have found early morning. There is also a secondary issue here of people photographing live insects that they have caught and photographed in some sort of studio set up. The issue again here, is mainly whether it is declared or not. There is nothing wrong with someone photographing their pet spider or whatever, in a studio set up, as long as they are saying what this is what it is, not pretending it is one they found and photographed in the field. Likewise, it is perfectly fine to collect and pose already dead insects, as long as you are honest about this.

Personally, I have always tried to mainly photograph live insects, in their natural habitat. However, I have always worked with entomologists, engaged in surveys, where I have photographed a rare specimen in an ad hoc studio, often a white plastic up, with moss in it. But I declare this.

As I've often worked with professional and academic entomologists, so I am well aware it is usual to kill collected insects, usually in something like absolute alcohol, which also preserves them. However, even though this is widespread, I personally believe it is unethical to kill insects for hobby or even professional photography, especially as this usually goes along with deceit about the circumstances in which the image was taken. The reason so many photographers lie about killing insects to photograph them is because it is unpopular, and they are doing it for popularity, so people will admire and "like" their photo.

Also in the UK, on protected sites like nature reserves it is usually illegal to kill or collect insects, which might be rare, without permission or a permit to do so. Which is normally only given to those engaged in scientific and academic surveys.

I think what drives this killing insects for hobby photography is competitiveness. It is an easy way for a competitive photographer to get an incredibly detailed photo, much better than any other. Personally, I don't think this type of competitiveness is healthy, especially if it involves deceit about the circumstances in which the photograph was taken.

[lorddryp]

100% agree. Macro photography is about connecting with life. It is about taking photos of living beings in their natural enviroment. It has different kind of vibe to see photo of living insect in nature :)

[lyromata]

This seems divisive for some reason. People get upset if you kill an insect to photograph but are happy to use insecticide to protect a veggie garden. Personally, I don’t have a problem with people making the best choice that suits their photography style and what best suits their skill level and equipment.

[andrewlamberson]

I am also into extreme macro/micro photography (4x and 10x) which relies on the insect not moving to get the stack. I only kill insects that are not rare or endangered. Most of my images are of live insects. I find a lot of interesting dead insects on sidewalks and parking lots. I have found some good butterflies in the grilles of truck in parking lots.

[andrewkev]

When I take macro photos of insects, I do that to admire the nature and life itself. I do that for myself and for people that can see and enjoy the beauty of life. I know it might sound far-fetched, but I don't want to kill for the amusement. Just imagine a picture of a beautiful butterfly that people appreciate, but you had to kill it to take this picture. What would be the point there? It just feels wrong to do so. Surely when insects like mosquitos do attack you at home, you kill them but then again you do not have any satisfaction or emotion out of it. That is correct as well that it is a challenge to take a shot of a flying insect in nature.

[davidmoore]

Not OK. And people who buy these collections encourage the sellers to go and kill more. Micael - why don't you do a video showing how to tell if a specimen is dead when photographed? It could be a helpful disincentive for photographers thinking of doing it.

[taylorhickman]

Your reaction to the cicada was great! Where I live the evenings outdoors are filled w/ the serenade of thousands of cicadas vibrating.

[ozabot]

I prefer to shoot insects in their natural environment when they are doing their own insect routine. It is always fun to look at them as no one does — another perspective I would say. It is like looking at another universe that was always there but we never cared about. Sometimes I pick up dead insects but they never look good. Btw I shoot using a mobile phone and a cheap lens. It is just a hobby to me, so I have no intention to kill an insect to entertain myself.

For me the way i see things it's very simple:
Kill for fun? Wrong
Kill for survivance or food? Acceptable

I've had this discussion with other macro photographers for years (i do macro for more that 10 years), and the majority of macro photographers do think the same way.

I'm not against photographing dead insects. If you find one in the wild, that is aesthetic, i think that it's ok.
My problem is with killing intentionally to have a photo, and in this video, it's even worse, as you are buying from another company.

In the end, it's with your conscience that you need to deal, since on the final image, we can't distinguish a dead from a live insect...

[dreejz]

I had no idea this even existed and frankly, I'm appaled by it! Don't kill insects when it's unnecessary.

Thanks for being open about it though

[Juni]

It genuinely makes me sad. I'm shocked that so much people do actually think it's ok to kill something just for the goal to take a nice photo.. I mean, would anyone do that for birds wildlife photography? And to me buying an insect who was killed by someone else doesn't make you any less guilty. Please don't do that.. There are many things to shoot in every seasons. Springtails is a good example, you can find them even in winter.

[robertclarke]

I just can't get on board with killing something for the sake of art. Better an imperfect image of a living creature, than a perfect shot of a dead one.

[Beatsy]

What about killing thousands of times *more* insects just to have a "well tended", flat, green monoculture in your garden? Freezing a couple of dozen insects a year for study, photography and ultimately dissecting and mounting on microscope slides is effectively nothing in comparison, and entirely defensible IMO. I draw the line at anything over 10mm unless it's very, very common (bluebottles and the like). Never bees or butterflies, but micro moths are fair game. Most of my "frozen" subjects are just little black dots to the naked eye - 1-2mm or so. We all draw the line in different places...

[BIGplanetLife]

I don't kill insects to photograph either...BUT Look at the front of your car and on the windshield at all the bugs you killed, plus how many you ran over on the road while driving. and how many you stepped on while walking/hiking, etc....And some people spray chemicals in their yard/property and kill thousands of insects at a time. Just saying...

[francoisvdb]

When I checked first the title of the video, I was intrigued. In the end, I think that you doing very well to explain your approach. As a biologist, my studies lead me to kill insects for collection. So I have no problems with that. A philosophic question could be « why killing tick is ok but killing an butterfly not? » . Of course, the question of the preservation is important and that why it’s better to go on professionnals sites. The packaging of the insects that you have is quite standard but good. I think that use dead insects to train your macrophotography is not a wrong way to learn. And if it can open the door of the macrophotography to some poeple, just go for it ! To conclude, I invite you to check the work of Levon Biss who use dead insects in an educationnal way. Thank you for this interesting video. Hurry to se the result in your next one !

[nickisuthers]

One thing to consider with your bought insects is that they were farmed for just this purpose, not just captured and killed in the wild. I think sometimes we shy away from the thought that people farm things because they are pretty, or interesting, rather than just for our consumption. I would not deliberately kill an insect to photograph it, preferring to find them in their natural setting when I'm out and about, but I would consider buying an ethically dispatched, farmed, subject to photograph in studio and to then frame and show its beauty within my home.

[malmedia]

I live in the Ozarks and there are a plethora of dead bugs and other critters to find indoors and out. For photography, keeping them clean and dust free is one concern.

[luchespindola]

hi micael, I started with photography last year and i likes the macro a lot, and one of the reasons is that it isolates me from many things, things like social media push me to go out to the park to walk with my dog and the camera and that for mental health is very good like physical health too, I have also considered trying extreme macro because I live in Scotland and winter is long and hard like in Sweden but even so they preferred to go out and learn how insects live and all their nature and That is priceless

[MichelleCox]

I don't have an issue with other people doing it, as long as the insect isn't rare or endangered. I watch Allan Walls' videos and those are almost always dead ones. It's not something I personally want to do, though. I don't want to kill an insect that isn't bothering me just to take its photo and I certainly don't want to do all that work they have to do to clean and preserve the thing. I'm a photographer, not an entomologist. :) That said, I am interested in how it goes with these purchased ones. You're going to have to take them out of the plastic to photograph. Are they preserved enough that you can do that without them starting to go bad? As someone who also lives in a colder climate with a limited bug season, the idea is intriguing. Still not sure I really want to handle dead bugs but I'll watch how it works for you and we'll see how I feel in the dead of winter when I am really bored with what is available to shoot. LOL!